Effervescent
by mystic moogle
Summary: AU. It's New Year's Eve. And it's so loud. Riku/Kairi.


**A/N:** Happy New Year's Eve, everyone! I'd like to give a quick shoutout to **BlissfulNightRain** , since this oneshot was inspired by how much I love her Riku in ADWMBFS. This shall also be a high school AU, taking place in Times Square NY, featuring a very sarcastic/deadpan Riku.

x - x - x

It's New Year's Eve.

And it's so _loud_.

I gaze out at the multitude of garish lights and screaming people with a scoff. Raking a hand through my hair, I force myself to walk away from the window and sit down on the couch.

Seriously, what's so great about New Year's? There's nothing out there but some seizure-inducing advertisements and a giant glittering ball. Oh, and a sea of people cheering incessantly and throwing confetti in your face. Just what I need.

I mean, the idea is nice enough. Celebrating the new year with loved ones and trying to better yourself for the new year. I'm all for that. I usually spend New Year's with Sora and Kairi at Sora's house and we roast chestnuts and eat dinner with his family. But not this year.

Sora's planning on spending it with my little sister, Naminé. Which is completely fine; they've been going steady for a few months now and I don't want to ruin this for them. I _could_ spend it with Kairi, but... that might have different implications.

Glancing around the room, I notice a certain... emptiness in the air. There are no lights or decorations from Christmas. Hell, we don't even have a tree. I guess that's just what happens when your parents insist on having an apartment in Times Square and have to work overtime.

At least Naminé and I have each other.

The doorbell rings and my little sister comes flying down the stairs. "I'll get it!"

She primps her hair and smooths her skirt free of wrinkles in the window's reflection. She's wearing a white fur cloak (faux, because she loves animals) and a pale blue dress underneath.

I can't help but chuckle to myself. She looks like a snow princess—like a wintry version of little Red Riding Hood or something. It's times like these that I'm glad she's dating Sora and not Seifer.

She opens the door with grace and Sora comes bounding in. He sweeps her into his arms and says, "Naminé, I missed you!"

She giggles girlishly and wraps her tiny arms around him. "I missed you too, Sora!"

I roll my eyes at the gesture. At least he's sincere enough. I get up from the couch with ease and make my way over to the happy couple.

Sora retracts himself and unleashes his wrath upon me instead. "Happy New Year, Riku!"

Oh, great.

I give him an awkward half-hug in return and pat him on the head. "Nice to see you too, Sora."

He beams up at me and hands me a sack of roasted chestnuts. "Mom and I made some of these for you earlier this afternoon. You know, as an apology for not being able to host New Year's this year."

I have to admit, I'm kind of surprised and kind of touched. But I don't tell him that.

"Hey, it's cool," I say, deftly swiping the bag. "I should be thanking you for taking my sister out. God knows she's been looking forward to this."

I toss a smirk in her direction and she huffs, a heated blush rising to her cheeks. Sora remains totally oblivious.

"No problem," he chirps and wraps a free arm around her. "There's nothing like karaoke on New Year's Eve!"

"Right!" Naminé pitches in, a smile on her face. "I'm so excited, but also afraid..." She lowers her eyes. "What if they don't like my voice?"

"Hey, don't say that!" Sora says, turning around to hold her at arms-length. "You have a beautiful voice. And if you get scared, then we can go up together."

He smiles down at her, and she beams up at him. "Thank you, Sora."

I survey the scene with cool indifference. Though inside, I'm pretty happy for them. And to think my sister could have ended up with some asshole of a boyfriend instead of Sora.

...Yeah, I'm pretty happy, now that I think about it.

I'm about to offer some parting words and leave them to their festivities, but Sora stops me in my tracks.

"So what are you gonna do for New Year's, Riku? Got any plans?"

"Yeah," I say coolly, holding up the sack. "Me, these chestnuts, and the sports channel."

"Aw, come on, Riku!" Sora pouts. "That's no way to spend New Year's!"

"Sora's right," Naminé says, worrying her lip. "I'm sorry, Riku... I didn't realize... Do you want us to stay with you?"

What?! No!

"That won't be necessary," I say swiftly. They look down at the floor almost tragically, causing me to sigh. "Come on, guys. I don't care about being alone. If anything, I'll be able to relax without you two goofs around."

"That's not true and you know it," Sora refutes. "But..."

Uh-oh.

"I suppose if you don't wanna spend New Year's with us you could always spend it with _Kai-ri_." He's wearing a positively mischievous grin, one that makes me wanna throttle him. Too bad Naminé's here.

"Huh? Why the sing-song tone, Sora?" she asks, blinking. "Is there something going on that I should know about?"

"Not at all," I say, ushering them both out the door. "Now get out of here before the karaoke bar closes. Thanks for the chestnuts, Sora. And take care of Naminé for me."

I promptly ignore the "I'm not twelve, Riku!" and instead focus on the "Okaaaay!" from Sora, though that's not terribly reassuring either. Ah, well. I have faith in my best friend.

"Seriously, Riku, Kairi's not doing anything tonight. You should call her up!"

Yeah, forget that. What am I supposed to do, invite her over so we can watch a movie? I'd rather not be responsible for things like that.

Instead, I find myself saying, "Maybe I will." Just to get him off my back.

They wave happily and continue on their merry way. Closing the door, I return to the dark apartment and think of something totally un-lame to do. Oh, right. Sports.

I settle back down on the couch and switch on the TV. Ice hockey. Perfect.

I start on the bag of chestnuts, wishing I had someone to share them with. God, I'm so lame. Sora's right. This is no way to spend New Year's.

But can you blame me? It's so loud outside. I can barely even hear my own thoughts. My eyes flicker over to the multi-colored sky and I suck in a sharp breath.

No, I won't do it.

Frustrated, I force myself to watch the game for about an hour before my restless-ness takes over me and I'm pacing around the apartment. I entertain the idea of some cleaning or writing the next review for my online blog. Hell, I might as well do my calculus homework at this point.

Eventually, I plop back down on the couch and flip through the channels until I'm staring at an effervescent silver ball. It gleams coldly against the black night, staring back at me with silent laughter.

Goddamn it.

I stare back at it with a surly expression until my phone goes off. Startled, I fumble with the remote before putting it down in favor of my phone. The blue light comes on and I read the text.

 _Kairi: Why don't you come outside and watch the ball drop instead of just watching it on TV?_

...She has a point. Alright, fate. Mock me if you will.

I get up from the sofa for the third (fourth, fifth time) and grab a simple black peacoat. It looks good with my silver hair. Not that I care. It's just Kairi. We've known each other for years.

So why is this so hard?

I already know the answer. When Sora's with us, it's easy, like a piece we've played thousands of times, but when it's just Kairi, it's... well, it's different. We're still writing our song together, a soft ballad instead of a loud tune.

Lacing up my boots, I jam my hands into my pockets and make my way out into the horde of people. Finding her is like finding Wally. That is, until she waves at me with her soft white mittens and bright pink siren of a jacket.

I chuckle to myself. What is it with this girl and pink? Well, at least this isn't as bad as her purple phase back in middle-school.

I approach her calmly.

"Hey," I say, wearing a mask of indifference. I'm still waiting for her to start the song. I can either be a stoic gentleman or a bit of a tease. Whatever she wants.

"Finally! I've been waiting for you to crawl out of your hole," she says and jabs me in the shoulder.

...Or just Riku.

"Like you're one to talk," I scoff, unable to hide my smile, "Little Miss Perfect. You've been so wrapped up in your student council duties that we haven't seen you all vacation."

"Well, you're seeing me now," she says, smiling, "and I saw Sora earlier. He stopped by my house to give me some roasted chestnuts. Sweet of him, right?"

Damn you, Sora.

"Yeah," I mutter. "Real sweet."

"But that's not the reason I called you out here." She laces her hands behind her back, and for a minute, my heart stops. "Say, Riku... what's your New Year's resolution?"

It resumes its normal pace and I cast my gaze off to the side. There are a lot of people around us, screaming and cheering. They're so damn excited. "Dunno. Getting into college."

"You're so boring!" She lands another good one on my shoulder and I'm left rubbing the spot with the hint of a smile.

"Yeah? What, were you expecting something sappy, like 'getting a girlfriend' or 'staying with my friends forever'?"

"Well, that would've been nice," Kairi mutters, and I grin. She lifts her eyes again and quickly realizes her mistake. "The second one, I mean!"

"Yeah, sure," I say. She's so fun to tease. "As nice as it sounds, I'm not sure that's a possibility."

"What do you mean?" Her eyes shoot up to meet mine, and I'm nearly tempted to ask, "Isn't it obvious?" but then I remember their plans. Kairi's an artist and Sora's an actor. They're both staying in New York. I'm not.

"I'm getting out of this place," I tell her seriously, placing both hands on her shoulders. "We've been in this city our whole lives. Don't you want to know what else is out there?"

"Home is where the heart is," she says, clasping a hand over mine and encasing it in warmth. Kairi gazes up at me, and the strobe lights make her violet eyes shine. "I have no doubts you'll get into college, Riku."

"Same goes for you," I breathe. "You're a brilliant artist."

It's true. Like Naminé, Kairi's been dabbling in the arts since she was little. Although Naminé prefers elegant pencil sketches while Kairi prefers to paint her heart across the walls of her room. And maybe us, too. She brings out the best colors in both me and Sora, and around her, I don't feel like an empty canvas anymore.

In that moment, I realize how much I'm going to miss her.

The cheering around us gets louder, and there's an explosion of fireworks in the night sky. It crackles in the air, before falling to the earth like stardust.

10...

9...

8...

"Well," she says, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, "whenever that time comes..."

4...

3...

"Yeah?" I ask, my heart palpitating in tandem with the beat.

1...

"I'll never forget you, Riku." Kairi reaches up and tugs me down by the lapel of my coat just as the glittering ball drops, sealing me in a kiss. I'm too shocked to do much of anything, and by the time I react because _Kairi is_ _kissing me_ , it's over. Goddamn it.

"Let's make our last year a good one, okay?" she breathes, the words coming out in little wisps against the cool night air.

"Sure," I say, reaching up to cup a hand against her ruddy cheek. "What's that line you like to say to Sora and I?"

She smiles and clasps a soft mittened hand against my fingers. "'Wherever you go, I'm always with you?'"

"Yeah, that." I let my hand slide along the length of her jaw before tilting her chin up for another kiss. She wraps her arms around my neck and there are people around us screaming and cheering and a shitload of confetti in my hair, but for once, I don't care. They say that how you spend New Year's determines how you'll spend the rest of the year, and if it's like this, wrapped in Kairi's warm embrace, then maybe I don't mind so much.

...Yeah, I'm pretty happy.

x - x - x

A week later, I enter the classroom to see the guys all gathered around Tidus's desk. Kairi's not here yet, but Sora is.

They glance up simultaneously as I drop my book bag onto my chair.

"'Ey, Riku!" Wakka says and waves me over.

"Yeah, Riku, come here!" Sora says and I head over with a raised brow.

It's too early for this.

"What is it?" I ask, clapping a hand over Sora's spiky head so I can actually, you know, see the laptop screen.

He wrestles with me momentarily, still wearing that stupid grin, and I capture him in a headlock. He flails for a moment, before extricating himself.

"Lay off for a moment, will you, Riku?"

"You're the one that started it," I scoff. "Or your hair, rather."

"Hey, don't diss the spikes," he says playfully, causing me to smile. I'll never admit it, but Sora always brightens my day. Both of them do.

God, I miss Kairi.

"Alright," I say, leaning forward to get a better look at what I assume is a viral video. To my surprise, it's not. I find myself staring at a familiar effervescent silver ball.

Oh, great. A New Year's video. I scan my eyes across the screen and see a whirlwind of confetti, a bunch of drunk people making out, some asshole with silver hair...

I pause in horror at said 'asshole' making out with a petite girl wearing a bright pink siren of a dress and white mittens.

Oh, _shit_.

"So, you and Kairi, ehhh?" Wakka claps me on the back and the rest of the guys burst into laughter, all sporting roguish grins.

I smack my hand against my face in a literal facepalm, trying to stave off the intense blush creeping onto my skin.

...I take back what I said before.

It's gonna be a _long_ year.

x - x - x

 **A/N:** Oh, Riku. x3 Anyways, I hope you enjoyed reading this and have a Happy New Year!

\- mystic moogle


End file.
